Our backyard is full of Lady Bugs this year. We have lots of aphids so there is plenty of food for them to feast on. We also have lots of finches too which I suspect are eating the lady bugs.

Photographed with a Nikon D500, 50mm lens, 36mm extension tube and Raynox 250, Meike320 flash.

Southern Alberta, Canada.

Summer is over, and what a strange summer it has been for so many people around the world. Many people have doubts about what will happen concerning the pandemic, but it is nice to think about the beautiful things this hot season brought us. For the rest of my life I will have memories of those many happy moments. My summer took me to wonderful places that I shared through images and videos with the important people in my life. I like summers because millions of people smile and that is always a beautiful to me.

Southend comes to Sanna. So many people I met...from Essex. Nothing is special anymore! The hordes have discovered the Ardnamurchan jewels. The car park is full and there were more than 40 people along the beach. I can't decide if it's a good thing or bad. We don't want to become like Skye or ruined like the NC500. Should we just keep schtum????

AMSTERDAM -The “Stopera” is a building complex in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, housing both the city hall of Amsterdam and the Dutch National Opera & Ballet, the principal opera house in Amsterdam that is home of Dutch National Opera, Dutch National Ballet and Holland Symfonia. The building was designed by architect Cees Dam and Wilhelm Holzbauer.

The name "Stopera" is a portmanteau of stadhuis (Dutch: "city hall") and opera.

Chlorophyll is vital for photosynthesis, which allows plants to absorb energy from light.

Chlorophyll molecules are specifically arranged in and around photosystems that are embedded in the thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts. In these complexes, chlorophyll serves two primary functions. The function of the vast majority of chlorophyll is to absorb light and transfer that light energy by resonance energy transfer to a specific chlorophyll pair in the reaction center of the photosystems.

shared with pixbuf.com

Just yesterday I found out about this curiosity. Scientists estimate that in the early days of life on Earth the day lasted only about 6 hours. Today we know that every year the day lengthens by 2 microseconds. But there is no need to worry. In 100 years, a day will be about 2 milliseconds longer than today, that is, 1/500 of a second, much less than the duration of a blink!

Justo ayer me enteré de esta curiosidad. Los científicos estiman que en los primeros tiempos de la vida de la Tierra el día duraba sólo unas 6 horas. Hoy se sabe que cada año el día se alarga 2 microsegundos. Pero no hay que preocuparse. Dentro de 100 años, un día tendrá unos 2 milisegundos más que hoy, es decir 1/500 de un segundo, mucho menos de lo que dura un parpadeo!

This is the last mult-panel panorama I have to share. Maybe I'll take more at some point. They're fun, but quite a time-suck.

This is a 4-panel version of a 3-panel pano I did at the same time. This one has no edits between photos.

It's so strange to see the two shiprocks together though. In real life you don't quite get this view.

All I can really say about these is that they're harder than they look. Not much harder though. With a little pre-thought and some planning, you can pull it off.

.

.

.

'4/3'

Camera: Chamonix 45F-2

Lens: Steinheil München Anastigmat Actinar 4.5; 135mm

Film: Agfa CP-BU M X-Ray Film; 25iso

Exposure: f/25; 1/10sec

Process: HC-110; 1+100; 5mins

Washington

March 2025

Hopefully E.T. is on the EE network if he wants to make contact using this new communications mast in Torrin, Isle of Skye.

The patch of light pollution comes from Portree to the north, not helped by a wee bit of low cloud. Will need to come back on the next clear night (sadly rare here) and try to point south when Orion makes its appearance.

Whenever I see light pollution on the horizon, I can't help but remember the 1953 film Invaders from Mars, when young David sees a glowing spaceship from his bedroom window, landing behind a hill at night not far from his house.

Explored (Number 40) October 11, 2022.

West Alligator Head

This is the only secluded coastal beach camping area in Kakadu.

Although suited to those with a real spirit of adventure who enjoy out of the way places it is mainly used by locals for fishing and is rarely visited by travellers.

The turn-off to West Alligator Head is 2 km from the entry station. An 80 km 4WD track through the savanna woodlands brings you to the campground.

There are basic facilities at Pococks Beach but no defined camping areas at Pococks Beach Middle Beach or Jungle Camp.

There is no boat ramp but boats can be launched from the beach. You should note the tidal flat extends out 1.2 km.

Driving on the beaches is prohibited.

- - -

Dies ist der einzige abgelegene Strandcampingplatz an der Küste in Kakadu.

Obwohl es für diejenigen mit einem echten Abenteuergeist geeignet ist, die abgelegene Orte genießen, wird es hauptsächlich von Einheimischen zum Angeln genutzt und nur selten von Reisenden besucht.

Die Abzweigung nach West Alligator Head liegt 2 km von der Eingangsstation entfernt. Ein 80 km langer Allradweg durch die Savannenwälder bringt Sie zum Campingplatz.

Es gibt grundlegende Einrichtungen am Pococks Beach, aber keine definierten Campingbereiche am Pococks Beach Middle Beach oder Jungle Camp.

Es gibt keine Bootsrampe, aber Boote können vom Strand aus gestartet werden. Sie sollten beachten, dass sich die Wattfläche über 1,2 km erstreckt.

Das Fahren an den Stränden ist verboten.

for the first time this year i was go by bike and took a look at the nearby locations like this lake, alot of people i meet here, all enjoy the clean nature around here, i like this too because thats one of the rare lakes without privat areas directly on it and no motorboats are allowed here so the water and nature quality holds on here

thewholetapa

© 2014 tapa | all rights reserved

Macro Mondays 'what is that?' theme.

Answer can be found in the tags. Clue: it isn't plastic

The subject measures 5 cm in width

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok1w5PoCLqI&t=8s

In this mine it`s totally dark , so i have light painted with a flashlight

It is a wonderful feeling to walk around down in the underground and look at the beautiful ice and the old remains from the time when the mine was in operation. This place is totalt dark, so i have light paiinting it with a flashlight.I have stacked two photos.

Junior is hungry and no one is listening. Mom or Pop will come to the rescue soon with grubs. Thanks for visiting.

Richmond Park is a National Nature Reserve and deer park with 630 Red and Fallow deer roaming freely since 1637. The deer have played a major role in the park's history and have shaped the landscape too.

Our special grassland habitat depends on grazing and the parkland trees have a distinctive 'browse line' as the deer eat all the leaves and twigs growing below about 1.5 metres. Deer grazing also prevents tree seedlings from growing, keeping the grassland open.

During the autumn the deer 'rut' (breeding season) takes place. The Red stags and Fallow bucks compete for females (known as hinds and does respectively). At this time, the large males roar, bark and clash antlers in an attempt to fight off rivals and attract as many females as possible.

The young are born from May - July and are hidden by their mothers amongst the bracken and long grass. The young are very vulnerable at this time and their mothers, being sensitive to disturbance, will defend their babies.

This is from a selection of photographs I did with 35mm film during the second half of the 80s till around 2005. Scaned with the MINOLTA Dimage Scan Multi Pro

Is not a good shot, it was not easy to get good focus, but this is a very cute creature.

Ajolote / Axolotl / Ambystoma Mexicanum

ODC-Where I Live Is Known For...

This area of Upstate, NY is known for its beautiful waterfalls and gorges. In fact there's a saying here "ithaca Is Gorges!" It really is!!!

This is the bath house in Saltsjöbaden in the province of Nacka on the east coast of Sweden. Sunrise in summer in Scandinavia means an early rise when you want to shoot first light. I was out of bed at 3am, that's even for me very early.

Three horizontal images stitching together in a wide panoramic presentation.

Enjoy...

Image is under Copyright by Henk Meijer.

Contact me by email if you want to buy or use my photographs.

This is part of the view on 17 Mile Drive, on the Monterey Peninsula. There are tons of beaches in California, but there are also a few very beautiful rugged places like this. A little south of Monterey is Big Sur, which is definitely one of the most beautiful places on the planet and it has a rugged coastline, like this. Most days you can see a lot of seals playing and sometimes a few dolphins leaping out of the water. It’s an idyllic and very beautiful place.

At last, we have finally received a measurable snowfall. It is 7:45 AM, and it looks like we have received 6 inches so far - and the snow continues to fall.

It is eerily silent outside. So quiet in fact - that you can hear that proverbial pin drop.

The animals must be settled into their hidey holes to wait out the storm, so Doc will not need to hurry out to the feeder stations this morning.

Because of the warm weather here in Alaska, bears are still roaming many areas of the state and people have recently been mauled by them. Hopefully the cooler weather and the snow will drive them into their dens.

In this photo you see our trusty old one ton truck blanketed in white, while the temperature sits at 17 degrees F. with no wind.

This is the "Show Room" of the Belle Isle Conservatory. Seasonal plantings are highlighted in this room, like a fantastic display of poinsettia for Christmas for instance.

This is the last in the series of pics from the Belle Isle Conservatory.

190720_180830_oly-PEN-f_normandië-bretagne

Harmonie mutuelle

Rue de Paris

Rue Victor Hugo

Le Havre

Normandie

France

De Sint-Quintinuskathedraal, toegewijd aan Quintinus, is in het centrum van Hasselt gelegen. De Sint-Quintinuskerk werd kathedraal bij de oprichting van het bisdom Hasselt in 1967. Tot dan waren de inwoners van de provincie Limburg leden van het bisdom Luik. Ze is tegelijkertijd parochiekerk van de Sint-Quintinusparochie. Het kathedraalkoor luistert er de pontificale vieringen op.

Geschiedenis

Met de bouw werd in de 11e eeuw begonnen. Uit die tijd stamt de uit ijzerzandsteen opgetrokken onderbouw van de toren (62 m hoog). Voor de rest is voor de toren mergel gebruikt (13e eeuw). De kerk zelf, zoals ze nu bestaat, is twee eeuwen jonger.

In de 16e eeuw bouwde men rond het reeds bestaande koor een omgang met vier kapellen.

Als rond 1560 hagenprekers uit Nederland in het prinsbisdom het protestantisme uitdroegen leidde Gerard van Groesbeek het verzet. Op 19 januari 1567 kreeg de kerk te maken met de Beeldenstorm en samen met Maaseik verklaarde deze stad zich kortstondig onafhankelijk. Sacramentshuis, beelden, zijaltaren en het hoogaltaar werden vernield. Gerard wist de orde te herstellen.

Zondagnamiddag 14 mei 1725 rond 19 uur sloeg de bliksem in op de torenspits, die vervolgens brandend door het noordwestelijk dakgebindte naar beneden viel. Hierbij werden beiaard, dak en orgel van de kathedraal vernield.

Nog datzelfde jaar werd de nieuwe, huidige torenspits op de toren geplaatst. Een restauratie volgde in de 19e eeuw en men plaatste neogotische glasramen. Enkele schilderijen komen uit de Abdij van Herkenrode. De Hasseltse kunstschilder Godfried Guffens versierde de kathedraal met muurschilderingen. Ze is voorzien van een beiaard.

De Sint-Quintinuskathedraal is sinds 1933 een beschermd erfgoed.

This is the complete album for my visit of the church. --- www.flickr.com/photos/136891509@N07/albums/72157662775306...

my son ♥

His passion for fishing is even more stronger when rain suddenly fall down ..

#lifeisbeautiful

CrazyTuesday #HappinessIs...

This snipe is hunting for food by poking his beak into the mud. It just finished poking on the right side of that clump of stuff right under its beak and now it is taking a step to poke on the other side. The snipes need those rather long beaks because they are often poking deep up to their face.

Taken in the Rich Grissom Memorial Wetlands at Viera, Florida.

Here is a scan of a recent addition to my collection of original vintage color slides. – This red-bordered Kodachrome transparency was not labeled with the date or location, which unfortunately is far too common with these old slides. - The Madison sign on the roof of that lumber yard shed shows the town name, but just about every state has a town or city named Madison.

Once again I relied on the license plate to provide a clue, the silver with black numbers/letters and “COMMERCIAL” across the top with a light green renewal tag in the lower right corner of the plate was the type issued by the state of Connecticut for the years 1952 through 1955.

If this is in the state of Connecticut, then this is the town of Madison which is located on the shoreline of Long Island Sound, and the railroad signal bridge behind the lumber yard sheds would be the double-track mainline of the New Haven Railroad.

Of course, the reason I wanted this slide was because of the main subject being a vintage Diamond T dump truck, how cool is that old workhorse ? - Like many truck manufacturers of this era, the same basic design was used for stretches of many years.

This style was used by Diamond T on some of their light to medium duty models from the year 1938 clear through 1950 with only very slight variations. – The four horizontal chrome trim strips on the side of the hood (instead of three) may narrow this one down to the model years of 1945 through 1948.

And check out that incredible grille guard ! - With its Diamond T emblem fabricated right in and two large circles for the headlights in the design, I don’t know if this one was a dealer accessory back then, or custom made by a skilled welder, but it is certainly one of the finest looking truck grille guards that I have ever seen.

Circa 1954 ~~ Photographer Unknown – Collection of, and Photoshop slide scan restoration by Jeff Hampton ©

I always had the plan to post more shots of the wonderful Iskanderkul in Tajikistan, but it is already three years ago that I finished my trip through central Asia, and how the world has changed since then.

Beside this shot www.flickr.com/photos/115540984@N02/49221949713/in/photol..., that I posted a long time ago, there were many more.

This image was taken when we left early next morning. The scenery was gorgeous thanks to the light and the haze, and the lake got a wonderful turquoise color.

Iskanderkul is situated in the northwest of Tajikistan, in the Fann-mountains. I am not sure if it was named after Alexander the great, the stories are somewhat vague on this matter, but what is sure is that the dacha of the Tajik president is situated at the east end of the lake.

We spent two days at this lake, and although this scenery is fantastic it took me a lot of pictures to capture its grandness. Not only the lake but the surrounding mountains are so stunning you don't know where to look all the time. Enjoy!

20 September 2019 I came back from my journey over a part of the Silk Road to and through Central Asia. 4 months of traveling through 14 countries (Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran) before I flew home from Teheran. An impressive journey in countries that are extremely beautiful, with lovely and welcoming people and diverse cultures and history.

Intense traveling with more than 20000 kilometers in our mobile home on sometimes roads that hardly could be called that way. We saw many villages and cities (some wonderful, others very ugly), countries that are transforming from the old Soviet era into something more related to older cultures and the way people live, often funded by oil readily available around the Caspian sea. We saw the amazing mountains south of the Black Sea, the wonderful Caucasus, and the high mountains in the far east close to China with peaks over 7000 meter, and not to forget the (Bulgarian) Alps!

We crossed the great steppe of Kazakhstan. a drive of at least 5000 km, the remnants of lake Aral, once one of the biggest lakes of the world, saw a rocket launch from Baikonur (this little part is Russian owned), we crossed many high mountains passes, and drove the breathtaking canyon that comes from the Pamir, beginning at ca 4500 meter, and going down for ca. 400km to an altitude of 1300 meter, driving for 100's of kilometers along the Afghan border.

And then the numerous lakes with all sorts of different colors from deep cobalt blue to turquoise, and one rare spectacle in Turkmenistan where a gas crater is burning already for more than 40 years. And finally and certainly not the least to mention an enormous amount of wonderful, hospitable and welcoming people. The woman often dressed in wonderful dresses, and bringing a lot of color in the streets of almost of all countries we visited.

I'm not able to find enough time to follow my eyes! Everywhere I go I see something, but especially when is calm and relaxing like Maldives. The white sand itself gave me a lot of inspirational thoughts..

Driftwood Branch Sinnemahoning Creek is a tributary of Sinnemahoning Creek in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. This stream once called simply "Driftwood Creek" was so named for the driftwood which accumulated there.

Course and tributaries

The Driftwood Branch rises in the northeast corner of Elk County and flows 36.4 miles (58.6 km) southeast to its confluence with the Bennett Branch.

Clear Creek, then North Creek, join the Driftwood Branch downstream of the community of Rich Valley.

West Creek joins downstream at the borough of Emporium, Cameron County, Pennsylvania.

Sinnemahoning Portage Creek joins approximately 1.0 mile (1.6 km) downstream.

The Driftwood Branch continues for 19.6 miles (31.5 km) to join the Bennett Branch at the borough of Driftwood to form Sinnemahoning Creek.

Sinnemahoning Creek is a tributary of the West Branch of theSusquehanna River. The Susquehanna River drains into the Chesapeake Bay on the Atlantic Seaboard.

Wikipedia

Size-wise, this tanker-truck is hazardous in a small village. All the buildings at this junction had been damaged at certain points in time by large vehicles. Leica M8, Elmar (coll.) 90/4.

This is a strange one! The tree is very large and tall but the flowers all hang from stems 10 feet or so from the ground so it feels like they are growing on a vine attached to the tree rather than the tree itself! These are called cauliflorous... flowers that grow from the trunk.

In the rainforests of South American, fruits of the Cannonball tree sway and clash in the wind, creating loud noises like artillery fire! These fruits really do resemble big, rusty cannonballs as they hang in clusters on the side of the tree attached to rope like tangles that emerge directly from the trunk.

The Cannonball tree’s beautifully complex and fragrant flowers resemble huge orchids. At night the flowers become particularly pungent in order to attract swift-flying pollinators. This particular Cannonball tree was collected in 1913 at Jamaica’s Hope Gardens and has flourished at Fairchild since it was planted here in 1938."

Couroupita guianensis, whose common names include Ayahuma and the Cannonball Tree, is an evergreen tree allied to the Brazil Nut (Bertholletia excelsa), and is native to tropical northern South America and to the southern Caribbean. In India it has been growing for the past two or three thousand years at least, as attested by textual records; hence it is possible that it is native to India also. It's part of the family Lecythidaceae and grows up to 25m (82ft) in height. The "Cannonball Tree" is so called because of its brown cannon-ball-like fruits. The majority of these trees outside their natural environment have been planted as a botanical curiosity, as they grow very large, distinctive flowers. Its flowers are orange, scarlet and pink in color, and form large bunches measuring up to 3m in length. They produce large spherical and woody fruits ranging from 15 to 24cm in diameter, containing up to 200 or 300 seeds apiece.

Cannonball Tree, Couroupita guianensis

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami, FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

This is an image of an around 50% illuminated phase of our closest planetary neighbour Venus.

I managed to get my planetary scope out back in June to image this beautiful object, shining brilliantly in our evening skies then. This represents the last time I have done any planetary imaging due to circumstances.

The data has been on my drive since and I'm only getting around to have a look at it now.

Venus is one of the so-called inferior planets, as it orbits the sun inside our orbit.

This means that Venus orbits the sun faster than earth and from our perspective is sometimes closer to us and at other times is on the far side of the sun. This change in relative position means we see phases for Venus (and Mercury).

Unfortunately when it approaches earth and is at its largest apparent size its phase also decreases!

This is a false coloured UV/IR filter image to reveal some cloud structure in the thick atmosphere of Venus. Data from the IR filter is mapped to the red channel and that from the UV is mapped to blue. A synthetic green channel is produced from a blend of both. Some lovely cloud structure is apparent.

Imaged with a Celestron C11 SCT and a ZWO 290MM camera. Using Baader IR pass and Venus U filters.

A line from the Beatles song Strawberry Fields.

For Macro Monday theme less is more. HMM

3rd January catkins at Bradfield Woods! Spring is coming!

BodyArts - Rosae

This is the Complete Rosaé Set (Hairpins & Headchain) it can be purchased separate or as complete set and is available now in our Bodyarts Mainstore and Bodyarts Marketplace

BodyArts - Xaphan Nails Blog Pack

The Blog pack includes male and Female version which are Sold separate! Colour changing Hud. Fits Lara/LaraX, Belleza Genx, Legacy and Reborn. Also included tattoo layer for marks and veins. Also this nails are sold with a 30% discount for BodyArts V.I.P group members permanently!

Body Arts Links

Earrings

iNeed Ice Cold Gauged XL F-PBR and Legacy TX.

Earrings Rigged for Swallow Gauged XL -Womans Only

Will be on Sale at Craft weekend 4th October.

iNeed Mainstore

The Matterhorn is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the Pennine Alps, whose summit is 4,478 metres high, making it one of the highest summits in the Alps and Europe.

This image is part of the limited Fine Art Collection “edition one | timeframe“ by bilderschmied.com

- Strictly limited edition, e.g.: Only 10 large (36“/91,44 cm) prints ever available.

- Extraordinary quality: Printed in full 300 dpi resolution on precious Hahnemühle paper.

- 100% Satisfaction Guarantee: If you don’t like your print, we will refund you - no questions asked.

- Worldwide free shipping

More information: -> shop.bilderschmied.com

-----------------------------------

“If the path before you is clear, you're probably on someone else's.”

― Joseph Campbell

Since I need some winter images for a proper photo calendar i looked for something worth capturing during those days when we had at least a little bit of snow.

Actually the amount of snow we had wasn’t even enough to cover the grass on this hill, so I cloned out hundreds of grass blades, which was great fun.

Not.

If you are into counting, you are welcome to check my assertion based on the original image:

www.facebook.com/bilderschmied.danz/photos/p.219055497459...

———————————————————

Copyright: bilderschmied.com

Website: bilderschmied.com

Shop: shop.bilderschmied.com

———————————————————

This is a special day to count our blessings and all things that we are grateful for. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Sponge cake, soaked in a light French brandy syrup iced and decorated with meringue. Fillings with homemade custard .

Decorations consist of sugar flowers.

Finish decoration by me with fall leaves and small pumpkin and wrapped swiss chocolate turkey.

Los Angeles. California.

coming

////////////////

this photo is part of "We are blind people made of colors" photo book published in a limited edition of 40 copies.

vacation day 3

Beckholmen dry-dock. Locking towards Södermalm. Stockholm.

More photos and info:

danaori.blogspot.co.il/2017/12/all-you-need-is.html#more

This is the Cape Blanco Lighthouse, built in 1870, on the western most part of the Oregon Coast, 256 feet above sea level.

Photographed 05-05-19 at around 3:45 pm, the sky isn't really this dark. I just lowered the luminance and applied darker levels to the sky when processing to illuminate the lighthouse itself.